Libertarian or Republican in House 30?

Libertarian in House 30 - or stealth Republican?

Fresh off his 88-12 Democratic primary win, Coralville state Rep. Dave Jacoby looks like he'll face another contest.



Dustin Krutsinger, a second-year med student (now there's a job that leaves lots of spare time for campaigning) launched a press release last night announcing his candidacy. The question is: which party?

Krutsinger's release says he's running as a Libertarian, and his campaign site includes a "why Libertarian?" page. However, as of last week he remains a registered Republican, and records show three donations (total $90) to the Johnson County Republican Central Committee - of which he remains a member.

Is the GOP brand so damaged in Johnson County that they're better off under a third party label?

Label notwithstanding, Krutsinger is identified as a Ron Paul backer by Shane Vander Hart of Caffeinated Thoughts, where Krutsinger guest-blogs.

Dustin considers himself to be a “Christian Libertarian.” He is unapologetically, and absolutely 100% pro-life. Dustin is a Ron Paul supporter, and credits his run for revitalizing Dustin’s interest in politics. He has recently been an activist for liberty in the Iowa City area with Campaign for Liberty.

None of Krutsinger's materials make any mention of Jacoby; as is common with third party (?) efforts it appears more to be a matter of where the guy happens to live.

Jacoby had a Democrat vs. Libertarian, no Republican race in 2004 and prevailed with 84% of the vote.

UPDATE: Krutsinger has responded via the comments; as follows:

Mr Deeth, I appreciate your article and you pose some valid questions. Here are some corrections/clarifications.

I'm now officially a 3rd year medical student.

I have been a member of the Republican Party since first registering to vote when I turned 18. I was somewhat apathetic about politics until 2007 when I started looking into presidential candidates and found that Ron Paul was different then the usual politician. Since that time I have spent a lot of time thinking of the issues and my positions fall into line more with the Libertarian party then any of the others. I remained in the GOP to vote for libertarian leaning Republicans in primaries and to try to advance liberty issues within the major party. You can read my experience with this here: http://www.dailyiowan.com/2010/04/01/Opinions/16452.html. The $90 donations: $65 was fees they call donations required to attend county and district convention as a delegate, which I attended to attempt to influence the platform. Don't remember what the other $25 was for, but likely something similar. You can read about that experience here: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000474142906&v=app_2347471856#!/note.php?note_id=411671019253

I have decided that running for house as a Libertarian would be a more effective way promote and advance these types of issues. I have mailed in my voter card to change my party and have emails in to the Johnson County GOP leadership to resign my position on the central committee.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.

Thanks,
Dustin